Living Through Memories
by AUFaberry
Summary: Quinn is a woman on a mission, her mission is to seek revenge. Sometimes love is stronger than hatred, she finds. A Faberry tragedy AU Based off of Final Fantasy 7 . Quinn/Rachel Femslash.
1. Thank You

Living Through Memories

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Final Fantasy.

Authors Note: This story is based on the storyline of Final Fantasy 7 a JRPG; it will closely follow the script only deviating in detail as well as romantic interest/added scenes. I hope that you all enjoy it still.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter 1

Thank You

It was a dark cold night, I should have felt the bitter ache in my joints due to the weather, but I felt nothing. I should have felt worry or anxiety about the battle at hand, a longing to be certain that I make it out alive in order to sustain relationships with dear ones on earth, but I felt no such longing. As a trained soldier I was prepared for the battle, I was prepared to die tonight. My heart was not racing. My hazel eyes were fixated out the window of the train that was coming to a harsh stop and I nearly grinned at the excitement of the mission. The excitement of getting my revenge.

One of my supervisors stood at the doors of the train, as the others filed out of the vehicle. "C'mon newcomer. Follow me." He stated and I did as I was told.

Immediately after exiting the train we were met by two men clad in armor, wielding powerful looking guns. It should have been intimidating, considering that my weapon of choice was a large sword and that I was a much smaller woman, but I was never intimidated. I went into every battle wanting to die.

One of the soldiers turned to the other laughing. "Are you kidding me? This is who they send?"

Laughing the other turned his attention toward me. "Shouldn't you be home playing with your dolls little girl!"

In only seconds I had sliced one of the soldier's throats and pierced the other straight through the chest with my sword. Often men underestimated my strength. I was a soldier, born and raised to be a killing machine. The blood of thousands stained my hands and now theirs did as well. With an emotionless face I glanced toward the rest of my team and reveled in their shock. It appeared they had been underestimating me as well.

"Wow!" One of the men said with admiration on his tongue. "You used to be in SOLDIER all right! It's not every day ya find one in a group like AVALANCHE."

"SOLDIER? Aren't they the enemy? What's she doing with us?" A girl from my team questioned, suddenly wearing a defensive mask. I did not speak nor did I smile, I simply stared her straight in the eyes.

"Hold it; I said she was in SOLDIER." He flashed a toothy grin nodding in my direction. "She quit them and now she is one of us. Didn't catch your name—"

"—Quinn." I interrupted harshly. Not wanting to waste time with introductions. We had a mission to accomplish and we were not going to do so by standing around and catching up. As far as I was concerned I knew enough about these people.

"Quinn, eh? I'm—"

"—I don't care what your names are. Let's just finish our job so that I can get out of here." My voice was bitter and monotone, uncaring.

"What the hell are you guys doin'! I thought I told you never to move in a group! Our target's the North Mako Reactor. We'll meet on the bridge in front of it!" Our leader announced when he realized that we were spending too much time talking and not enough time focusing on our mission. I for one was thankful he had taken the initiative.

Both the man and woman I had been speaking with made their way through the door, and another young man approached my right side. He appeared to be my age; he was extremely fit with tan skin and a Mohawk. He wore a vest sans shirt, showing off his well-defined abdomen. Army green pants tucked into combat boots. The most distinguishable trait he had though was that one of his hands had been replaced with a machine gun. I had never seen anything like it. Peering down at me with suspicious brown eyes he stated bluntly. "Ex-SOLDIER, huh?"

I nodded my head in affirmation.

"Don't trust ya." With that he started through the door and toward the top of the reactor, I followed closely behind him. Content that he would be my new partner, at least he shouldn't try to start small talk with—

"—Yo! This your first time in a reactor?"

Or perhaps he would try and start small talk. Letting out a sigh I tucked a few stray strands of blonde hair that had fallen out of my tight ponytail behind my ears. "No. After all, I did work for Shinra."

The young man literally appeared to shake due to his anger on the subject; he definitely held hatred toward Shinra. Not that I could blame him, I held my own hatred. "This planet is full of Mako energy you know? People use it every day. It's pretty much the life blood of this planet, and Shinra just keeps suckin' the blood out with these reactors. They are like freaking vampires and—"

"—I'm not here for a lecture. Let's just hurry." I interrupted, no longer wishing to listen to his rant. It may have been true, it probably was true, but I held no feelings of remorse toward this young man.

We proceeded toward the elevator, I tried to keep conversation to a minimal but he persisted as we started to move down. He had his back against the elevator wall and his arms crossed over his exposed chest as he watched the buttons flashing colors, my eyes were fixated on the doors. Praying that they would open and allow me sweet escape.

"Little by little, the reactor'll drain out all the life. And that'll be that."

"It's not my problem."

"The planet's dyin', Quinn! Don't you care at all?" I could feel his eyes on me but I focused intently on the doors, never making eye contact.

Chewing on the insides of my cheeks I clenched and unclenched my gloved fists in frustration. "The only thing that I care about is finishing this job before security comes." His eyes were practically burrowing into me at this point and I knew that he was debating what many had before, if I was truly as cold hearted a woman as I appeared. If I were only a murderer with a mission. The answer was, yes.

"Whatever." He muttered. Luckily the doors opened so that I would not have to endure any further frustration.

Quickly, we filed out of the elevator heading toward the reactor. The young man with the Mohawk glanced back at me, again trying to speak with me. "When we blow this place, this ain't gonna be nothin' more than a hunka junk. Quinn, you set the bomb."

I did not feel that I had adequate skills in said area, and I actually felt slightly worried by his request, what if I ended up accidently killing us all. "Shouldn't you do it?"

"Jus' do it! I gotta watch to make sure you don't pull nothin' I still don't trust you."

Rolling my hazel eyes in his direction, I turned toward the reactor in order to begin setting the bomb. "Fine, be my guest."

"Trust me, I will." He said with a confident smirk on his lips.

Feeling his eyes on me as I bent over to work on the machine I let out a soft growl of annoyance. That was one thing that I hated about working with men. They were always far too promiscuous. Looking at me as if I were an object or just eye candy on a mission, I served a purpose; I was more than a sexy body.

Once I had set the bomb I heard the young man shout out. "Heads up, here they come!"

Turning around quickly, swiftly retrieving my sword despite its size, I prepared to attack, but it appeared that it was not necessary. I fixated my hazel eyes on the bodies of the soldiers as they were riddled with bullets by the other man's machine gun arm. He shot off well over enough bullets in order to kill them multiple times, blood spraying along the railing of bridge to the reactor. It was beautiful, and for the first time I looked at him as a worthy comrade and not just another pig I had to work with.

As their bodies dropped I turned to catch his eyes, ignoring the smug smirk her wore. "Come on, let's get out of here!"

Meeting back up with the team I followed them as we rushed through the city, hoping to reach the train within the ten minute limit that I had set on the bomb. As I rushed through the city I felt my shoulder collide with a person. I tried to reach out and catch them before they fell, but it was too late. Glancing down I saw that it was a thin, pale, young man with bright blue eyes who had been carrying a basket full of flowers. They were now scattered about. Holding out my hands I helped pull him to his feet, knowing that I did not have time to actually speak with him.

Unsurprisingly he wore a worried expression as he looked to the reactor. "Excuse me, but what is going on?"

"Nothing." I muttered, knowing that I needed to return to the mission at hand. Feeling guilty about running into him I looked down at his basket of flowers, realizing that he was selling them. "Don't see many flowers around here."

"Oh these, Do you like them? They're only a gil…?" He stated, I noticed that his voice was very high-pitched and sweet in nature.

"Yeah, I'll take one."

"Oh, thank you! Here You are!" He practically squealed out of excitement, jumping up and down, before handing me one of the flowers. I had in mind who I could give it too. With a nod at him I dismissed myself returning to the mission.

Suddenly I was attacked by two guards and instead of killing them, decided it best to avoid them and jump onto the next train car, I did not want to risk my life in order to attain a cheap thrill. It should have been terrifying but as I hurled my body onto the train, it was instead exhilarating. I felt alive in that moment, heart pounding, breathing heavy, as I stared out the window at the Reactor that combusted into flames.

Shrapnel blew off of the reactor in every direction and I secretly sent up a prayer that the steal tracks would be sturdy enough to hold the train in place despite the rumbling of the earth. I was mesmerized by the explosion, like a kid mesmerized by fireworks during a parade.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Puck leant against the train car, arms crossed over his chest. He was worried about Quinn; she had not made it onto the train with the rest of them. Still, there was something about her eyes that made him not worry about her safety. She could take care of herself.

"Quinn never came." One of the men stated.

"Wonder if she was killed?" Another said which caused him to grow angry.

"There is no way that she is dead you guys, did you see her out there?" Puck asked clenching his fists as he moved away from the wall. "She was better than all of you guys put together, she will be fine." He knew that he was partially trying to convince himself. They had grown up in the same town, and although he had not worked with Quinn until this mission, he had heard many things about the blonde. She was a hard worker, strong, determined, and passionate. At least that is what Rachel had told him.

"Say, do you think Quinn's gonna fight to the end for AVALANCHE?" One of the men asked curiously.

Puck knew that he needed to learn how to control his anger, he always took it overboard, but he was frustrated. Rachel would never forgive him if he allowed Quinn to get hurt. "The hell would I know? Do I look like a mind reader? If you guys weren't such screw-ups—"

"—What about our money?"

That pushed him over the edge, his muscles tensed and he slammed his hand into the train wall, frustrated. Immediately the young man who had asked about their payment corrected his mistake. "Uh, never mind. Sorry."

Suddenly they heard the sound of the door to the next car open and all of them glanced toward it, shocked to see the familiar blonde make her way through it. Her hair, now loosened from the tight ponytail, was sticking to her face due to the sweat; she wore a confident grin on her face as she raised an eyebrow at them all.

"Looks like I'm a little late." She stated, her voice raspier than usual because of the running she had been doing.

Puck smiled at her laughing. "Your damn right, you're late. Come waltzin' in here making a big scene."

She shrugged her shoulders wiping some stray blonde hairs out of her hazel eyes. "It's no big deal. Just what I always do."

"Shit, havin' everyone worried like that. You don't give a damn about anyone but yourself."

The smirk spread further across her face as she caught his eyes. "You were worried about me?" She asked playfully. Laughing when a light blush covered his cheeks, she would not expect someone who gave off such a tough appearance to blush so easily. It was almost cute.

"What? Of course not, and so you know, I'm taking this out of your pay. Now let's get going." With that he opened the door to the next car and headed through it, Quinn following closely behind him.

The conductor announced over the intercom. "Last train out of Sector 8 Station. Last stop is Sector 7, Train Graveyard. Expected time of arrival is 12:23AM, Midgar Standard Time."

Puck pointed toward the window of the train. "Look, you can see the surface now. This city don't have no day or night. If that plate weren't there, we could actually see the sky."

"A floating city… pretty unsettling scenery." Quinn mumbled, hazel eyes fixated on the city outside. It looked as if it could fall at any moment, murdering thousands below.

"Huh? Never expected to hear that outta someone like you. You're just full of surprises."

She pursed her lips sending him a glare.

"Anyway, the upper world is what it is. A city on a plate. It's 'cause of that shit, that people underneath are sufferin'! And the city below is full of polluted air. On top of that, the Reactor keeps drainin' up all the energy."

"Then why doesn't everyone move onto the plate?" Quinn questioned logically.

"Dunno." Puck shrugged his shoulders. "Probably 'cause they don't got no money. Or, maybe 'cause they love their land, no matter how polluted it gets."

Quinn thought back to growing up in the slums. Constantly worrying about obtaining money and food, learning how to take care of herself. It had been a terrible upbringing, but she would not change it if she could. It had made her the warrior she was today. "I know no one lives in the slums because they want to. It's like this train. It can't run anywhere except where its rails take it."

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

The slums were familiar territory to me. I could remember when I was a little girl, running around, playing with garbage and using my imagination in order to have fun with it. One time, I had built a sword out of old cans; Rachel had sparred with me, but insisted upon using her fists in battle. This of course ended badly for her, to this day if I close my eyes I can wander back to that moment. Seeing her with a cute pout on her lips, tears in her eyes, and bleeding hands where the sword had cut her.

From that day forward she had worn gloves during battle.

Following puck into the bar, my hazel eyes widened as he started to shoot his machine gun arm. Scaring off the patrons, so that we could have privacy. _'Rachel will probably not be all too happy about that…'_

Suddenly a little girl with blonde curls peeked her head out from behind the bar, running toward Puck, with outstretched arms. "Papa!"

"Beth!" Rachel stated moving out from behind the bar in order to run after the little girl, protectively. As my eyes landed on her I could feel my body immediately react, she always caused me to feel such things. Things that no one else could cause me to feel.

Biting down on my pink bottom lip I looked her over, it had been so long since we had seen each other. She had grown. Many features were the same as they had been; she still had long dark hair, beautiful large brown eyes, full lips, perfectly tan skin, and those endless legs. Her outfit left little to the imagination seeing as she was wearing a tank top that showed off her toned lower abdomen, a skirt that went well above her knees, some suspenders, combat boots, and gloves. _'Of course…' _I smiled softly, which she returned with a bright enthusiastic smile.

After Beth had finished receiving a hug from her father, in which he proceeded to spin her around in many circles, she had returned to her position beside Rachel who ruffled her blonde curls.

"Aren't you going to say anything to Quinn? She has been gone for a very long time, she probably missed you."

I watched as the little girl looked up at me, she did not recognize me, which I could not blame her for. She was only a baby the first, and last time, that I had seen her. Not old enough to speak, let alone remember me. Quickly Beth moved behind Rachel's legs hiding from me and shaking her head up at the beautiful brunette.

Furrowing her brows, she gave me an all too familiar apologetic look, and I smiled. Although I had denied it for most of my life, I loved Rachel. No matter where I was, if it was with her, then I was at home and safe. "Perhaps another time, when you are more comfortable with Quinn."

Large brown eyes caught mine and I caught my breath. "Welcome back Quinn, it appears that everything went as planned. Did you enjoy fighting with Puck?"

"Surprisingly, yes." I mumbled.

"That is surprising, neither of you are easy to get along with." She laughed, and it was like music to my ears. It took seeing her again to realize just how much I had missed her, just how much I had suppressed my feelings toward her.

Suddenly her eyes were fixated on the flower that I had bought from the young man, as I pulled it out of my pocket; it had been dented but all together was still in great shape.

"Is that a flower?"

"Yes, I bought it from a young man. I wanted you to have it." I said, awkwardly. Lifting the flower delicately, in order for her to take it from me. As our fingers brushed, a blush painted my pale cheeks and I could have sworn she was also blushing. But, it was more than likely only my wishful thinking.

"How nice, you rarely see flowers here in the slums. But, you really bought this flower for me?"

"Yes."

"Oh Quinn, you shouldn't have!" She said with a little more enthusiasm than I would expect from any other person that I may have given a flower to, but that was Rachel. She took every emotion to the extreme and that was one of the things that I adored about her. Seeing her bright smile, I knew that I had made the correct decision in buying that flower. It would always be worth it to see her smile.

"It really isn't much." I tried, but she was too excited.

"No, do not dare belittle this, it means the world to me Quinn. It smells wonderful; perhaps I should fill the entire bar with flowers?"

Before I could respond Puck interrupted my sentence shouting from the other side of the bar. "Get in here, fools! We are starting the meeting!"

"We will talk soon." I informed her before following him toward the pinball machine where we stood, pushing a button, the pin ball machine lowered into the ground. It had been a favorite place for me to hide when Rachel and I would play hide and seek. Who would have known she would turn it into a military hideout for rebellions? Rachel was always full of ambition and a need to follow a cause.

"So, Quinn. There's somethin' I wanna ask you." Puck said as we reached the hidden basement.

"Yes?"

"Was there anyone from SOLDIER fighting us today?"

"None. I am positive." I said assuredly.

He raised an eyebrow at me. "You sound pretty sure."

Looking away I chewed on my cheeks, crossing my arms over my chest. I knew that what I was about to say would probably upset the young man with an anger problem, but it was only the truth. "If there was anyone from SOLDIER, you would not be standing here now. I guarantee that." My voice was low, monotone, and nearly heartless.

"Don't go thinkin' you are so bad just 'cause you were in SOLDIER." I did not say anything, just continued to stare at one of the brick walls. Letting out a grunt of frustration he threw his hands up at my silence. "Yeah, you're strong. Probably all them guys in SOLDIER are. But don't forget that your skinny ass is workin' for AVALANCHE now. Don't get no ideas about hangin' with Shinra."

"Staying with Shinra?" I asked, hazel eyes now fixated on his. Holding brown eyes in an intense stare as I clenched and unclenched my jaw. I could not explain the amount of hatred that I felt if asked too. Keeping my voice even I said. "You asked me a question, and I answered it. That's all. I'm going upstairs. I want to talk about my money."

Rachel who had obviously been eavesdropping on the conversation descended using the elevator. She had the tendency to pry. "Wait, Quinn, I was really hoping that you would stick around for longer this time—"

"—Rachel! Just let her go! Looks like she still misses the Shinra!" Puck shouted, interrupting her, which only served to anger me all the more. If there were two things that could upset me it was talk of Shinra and someone yelling at the only person I ever cared to love.

"Shut up!" I growled out, my entire body shaking. "Don't you dare talk to her like that! And for your information, I don't care about either Shinra or SOLDIER! But, don't get me wrong, I don't care about AVALANCHE or the planet either!" _'The only thing that I care about is revenge and that woman standing over there…' _

Puck turned, punching his fist into the concrete wall and I no longer cared to stick around, moving toward the elevator I took it up to the main floor of the bar. Body still heated with rage. I knew that Rachel would follow me, and as expected she arrived at the main floor shortly after me. I tried to make it to the door before she could stop me, but her voice always pulled me out of my anger.

"Listen, Quinn. I am asking you to please join us. You would be a wonderful asset to the team, and—" She paused mid-sentence.

After waiting a few moments for her to continue I assumed she wouldn't. "Sorry, Rachel…"

"The planet is dying. Slowly, but surely it is dying. Someone has to do something." Her voice was pleading with me and I had to bite down on my bottom lip to avoid simply telling her that I would help, that I would do anything that she asked of me.

Taking a moment to gather myself, I declined. "So, let Puck and his buddies do something about it. This has nothing to do with me."

Looking down at her hands Rachel started to fiddle her fingers, I still had my back turned to her, but I could still imagine that those large brown eyes were full of tears. That I had once again caused her pain. I hated myself for always hurting her, for always making her feel terrible. Reaching out I placed a hand on the doorknob and that is when I heard her shout.

"So! You're really leaving!" Her voice quavered and I could hear her soft sobs, it broke me. I suddenly felt numb. I wanted nothing more than to give up my mission and stay with her, protect her. "You are just going to walk right out, ignoring me? Ignoring the one person who has never given up on you, no matter what?"

"Sorry." My voice cracked.

"I bet that you forgot the promise that you made to me as well."

Turning I met her tear filled eyes with confused hazel. "Promise?"

"So." She swallowed hard, lifting her chin confidently as she looked away. Never willing to show her weakness, even if I knew that it was there. "You did forget. Remember Quinn, it was seven years ago." Rachel's voice was so soft, just a hushed whisper. She sounded empty.

_7 Years Prior…_

_Quinn and Rachel were young children running around and playing on the playground, they climbed to the top of the slide, sitting up there looking up at the stars. It had always been their special place. _

"_Sorry I was late. You said you wanted to talk about something?" Rachel asked, looking over at the blonde. Wide eyes full of wonder. _

"_Come this spring…" Quinn started, looking down at her swinging feet. "I am leaving this town for Midgar."_

"_Everyone is leaving." She said. Pouting and crossing her arms._

"_But I'm different from all of them. I'm not just going to find a job. I want to join SOLDIER. I am going to be the best there is, just like Sebastian."_

_Rachel's head snapped in the other girl's direction, eyes wide and mouth falling open in surprise. "Sebastian? The Great Sebastian? Isn't it difficult to join SOLDIER?"_

_She never looked at her. "I probably won't be able to come back to this town for a while."_

"_Will you at the very least be in the newspapers if you do well?" She wondered, eyebrows knit together. Wearing a smile despite her sadness._

"_I'll try."_

_Suddenly she reached out slapping her hand over Quinn's knee, drawing her attention to her finally. Their eyes connecting. "Hey, why don't we make a promise?"_

"_A Promise?" She smiled a little at Rachel._

"_Yes, a promise." With a bright smile she continued on with her explanation. "If you get really famous, and I am ever in a bind, you come and save me, all right?"_

"_What?" Quinn questioned, raising an eyebrow._

"_Whenever I am in trouble, my heroine will come and rescue me. I want to at least experience that once in my lifetime."_

"_What?" She asked again, confused by Rachel's passion on the matter._

"_Come on, please, just promise me?" She pleaded._

"_All right, I promise…_

"You remember now, don't you? Our promise?" Rachel asked more timidly than before, biting down on her full bottom lip. I could not help but glance down at it, her lips looked so—No! Focus.

With a shrug of my shoulders I glanced away, ashamed. "I am not a heroine and I am not famous. I cannot keep—" Pausing I shuffled my feet. "—the promise."

Stepping forward she lifted a finger pointing it in my direction; I could smell her all around me. I had missed her so much. "But you did get your childhood dream, did you not? You joined SOLDIER. So come on! You have got to keep your promise."

Suddenly Puck pulled himself up to the second floor with a bag in his hand. "Wait a sec big-time SOLDIER! A promise is a promise, so here you go." With that he tossed the bag toward me. "1500 gil."

"This is going to be my pay? Don't make me laugh." I teased confidently, catching the excitement light up Rachel's face.

"What? That means that you will—"

"—Got the next mission lined up? I'll do it for 3000." I interrupted her; I was not ready to admit what lengths I was willing to go to in order to make her happy.

With a smile that spread nearly from one ear to the other Rachel spoke softly, sincerely. "Thank you Quinn."

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Authors Note

I would really appreciate it if you leave me a review to encourage me if you like the story, because I am unsure if it is good or not.

Thank you.


	2. I Don't Care If I Die

Living Through Memories

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Final Fantasy.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter 2

I Don't Care If I Die!

It was three in the morning and I couldn't sleep, I had far too much on my mind. I was starting to think that I was going crazy. My mind was plagued with memories, some wonderful thoughts about Rachel and I when we were children, others of blood and flames and mutilated bodies scattered for as far as the eye can see. Those were the two things that kept me going, and how different those two things were from each other. Love and hatred. Were they really all that different? Both were equally passionate, and both consumed as much of my mind.

Currently, I was sitting on the roof of Rachel's bar. Swinging my legs back and forth, I stared down at my gloves, hazel eyes tracing over the fabric as I bit down on my bottom lip. I knew that staying was not the best idea, but I could not say no to her. I had never been able to.

"Have a lot on your mind?" A familiar, and beautiful voice asked from behind me.

"What are you doing out here Rachel? It's late, you should be sleeping." I did not look up from my gloves.

She laughed, sitting down beside me. Swinging her legs off the side of the roof as well. I tried not to allow my hazel eyes to glance over at her perfect legs, but I failed. It made me feel guilty, she was my best friend. "Well, if that is your argument, then I could say the same about you. Surely a soldier requires more beauty sleep than a mere barkeep." Her voice was sweet, teasing. Despite myself I smiled.

"There is that beautiful smile. I have missed it." I glanced up at her, a light blush dancing along my cheeks as hazel eyes connected with large brown. They were mesmerizing, hidden behind long lashes, so full of emotions and feeling. So different from mine. "I've missed you." She whispered, reaching out and taking my hand.

Her skin felt so warm against mine, soft, amazing. The contact caused my heart to pound loudly in my ears, and I grew shy and nervous. I could decapitate a man without a blink of an eye, but I could not hold Rachel's hand without growing insanely anxious. To her though, it was nothing, I was certain.

She squeezed my hand and I looked down at our interlocked hands smiling. "I missed you too, Rachel."

"If that were the case then why wouldn't you come and see me for the past seven years, why didn't you call me, write me, visit?" I did not risk looking at her this time, as I could already hear the tears in her eyes and the quaver in her voice. I had been selfish in not doing those things, I pushed her away and I hurt her, that answer would not suffice. So, I remained silent.

Rachel let out a soft sigh and rested her head against my shoulder, her heated breath rushing along my ear and down my neck. I shivered. _'How could I possibly tell her why? How could I explain what I have become…?' _

"I'm just glad you have returned, Quinn. I started to worry that I would never see that pretty face of yours again."

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

"Our next target's the Sector 5 Reactor." Puck stated, once again taking control of the mission. I was used to taking orders, so it did not bother me. "Head for the station first, and I'll fill you in on the train." I nodded, and so did the rest of our teammates, before we all turned and started to head out of headquarters.

Once again I was stopped by Rachel before I could exit the bar. "I'm going this time, Quinn."

This caught my attention; there was no way that I was going to allow the other woman to risk her life on such a dangerous mission. I knew that the reasoning was selfish, but I did not care. I wanted Rachel to stay alive, I wanted her to find happiness, have a family, and I didn't want her to turn into a monster like myself.

Turning, I was met by determined brown eyes. I knew then and there that this was going to be a useless argument; she would get what she wanted. She was a determined, persistent, driven individual, and she always got what she wanted.

"Rachel, you can't come with me." I stated sternly.

Her eyebrows knit together and she cocked her head to the side, staring at me. "And why not, Quinn? You leave for seven years, and then return and you think that you can dictate my life. This is my choice, and I want to fight beside you!" She took a few steps closer to me, and now I could smell her all around me, surrounding me.

"Rachel—"

"—I am going." She persisted, balling her fists at her sides. With a pout on her full lips and a stomp of her foot, it was difficult to take her seriously. To me, she would always just be Rachel, the woman I loved.

"I just don't want to have to watch you get hurt, watch you die."

"Are you underestimating my fighting abilities? You of all people should know that I am well trained in most martial arts and that I am perfectly capable of holding my own against men even three times my size. I will not be dying any time in the near future." Her chin was held up confidently, as she stared me down. She was not lying; she could hold her own in a battle. I just did not wish to risk it.

"A lot of great men have fallen to the blade in battle. If you died, I don't know what would be left of me." I muttered, forcing the tears out of my hazel eyes. Willing myself not to show weakness.

Rachel did not say anything; instead she hurled her body at me and wrapped me up in a tight hug. I immediately felt safe, warm, and at home in her arms. It took me a moment to get used to my sensory overload and realize something that broke my heart, she was crying. I could feel the sobs, wet tear drops littering my clothing, sinking through and staining my skin. Tears that I caused.

"Rachel, don't cry." I tried, tangling my long slender fingers in her brown locks.

If anything she cried harder, gripping ahold of my shirt so tightly. Like a child gripping onto her parents on the first day of school. "Quinn, I don't care if I die—"

"—Don't say that Rachel." My voice was harsh.

"It's the truth." She continued to sob, and I continued to stroke her hair. Praying that it would bring her some sort of comfort and help heal her wounds, help to heal her scars. "I don't care if I die; I just want to spend my last time on this earth close to you. I missed you so much. Death cannot be any worse than the emptiness that I have felt over the duration of the last year. It was horrible."

Now the beautiful girl was letting out soft whimpers, as her tears finally started to calm. Knowing Rachel, it could only be the calm before the storm though; she tended to carry too many emotions. More than I would think possible for one petite woman.

I knew that I had no choice, as always, Rachel had gotten her way. "You can come with us."

"Thank you, so much!" She pressed her body even tighter against mine, and I blushed at the thoughts that rushed through my mind. It was terrible, I was terrible.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Author Note

I only received one review for my first chapter, so I only added a small chapter. It has a lot of Faberry goodness in it though. Hopefully I will receive more reviews encouraging me to continue this, if you guys like it.

Regardless, I hope that you all keep reading, and you are all amazing!


	3. Please Don't Die

Living Through Memories

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Final Fantasy.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter 3

Please Don't Die

Once again, I found myself on a train; I lived a good majority of my life on a train. Going from one mission to the next, escaping, hiding. There was a difference this time though, Rachel was with me. She was going on a mission with me. My anxiety rose when she was simply around, but knowing that she would be out on that battle field with me was all the more terrifying. I worried that it would throw me off. If I were too focused on protecting her, it could jeopardize the mission. It also could upset her; she was very intent on being self-reliant and being treated equally, if not superiorly, when it came to fighting.

Puck had once again used violence to scare off most of the other passengers, but there was one Shinra worker who refused to leave the car, now he was attempting to get him to leave. His tactics were nearly barbaric, but they were entertaining to watch. I glanced across the car to see Rachel who was standing with her hands on her hips, shaking her head at him.

"I am not going to be scared out of this train car by some hoodlum like you. Learn how to speak proper English and maybe I will take you seriously." The older man said, crossing his legs and opening his book.

"What the Hell? Are you kiddin' me!" Puck shouted aiming his gun arm at the other man. Instantly, he looked up, dropping the book. He was scared, but he still managed to keep his wit.

"You've seen the news, right? AVALANCHE says there will be more bombings. Only devoted employees like me would go to Midgar on a day like today. Do you think I am really going to be scared off by some little worthless punk?"

This pushed the other over the edge. Reaching out he grabbed ahold of the man in the suit, lifting him up by the collar and shoving the gun against his forehead. "You workin' for Shinra?"

I was shocked by his blatant anger toward anyone who worked for Shinra, honestly, I knew a few of the people who had been in SOLDIER with me, and not all of them were terrible. Most were corrupt, but as with any superpower, there were always some that wanted out and hated the system.

"Noah! Put that man down this instant!" Rachel shouted, storming up behind him.

The young woman was always like this, so it simply made me smile. What did shock me, on the other-hand was that Puck actually listened to her. Forcefully he shoved the Shinra worker back into his seat. "You're one lucky fuck, that's all I gotta say."

He was still shaking from anger as he headed back toward us, a scowl on his face. "Damn you Rachel, why do you always have to poke your nose in where it aint needed."

Rachel looked more than smug, but she did not answer his question.

Shaking my head at them I asked about the mission. I was curious. "So, what's our next target?"

Puck turned his attention away from the short brunette and focused on me. "Listen to Miss Serious-about-her-work!" When I shrugged my shoulders he laughed and rolled his eyes. He had more than likely been hoping for more of a reaction from me. "Alright, well, there's a security checkpoint at the top plate. It's an ID scan system checkin' all the trains."

"Which Shinra is extremely proud of." Rachel added with slight annoyance in her voice.

"We can't use our fake ID's anymore." He informed me. I felt myself grow nervous, but again I was only nervous because the other woman was present. My life was worthless, hers was priceless.

There was a dinging noise and the conductor once again spoke over the intercom. "Good Morning, and welcome to Midgar lines. Arrival time at Sector 4 Station will be 11:45."

"That means that we have got only three more minutes to the ID checkpoint." Rachel said, as her large brown eyes glanced toward the clock. I allowed my hazel eyes to follow them and realized that she was correct, I wondered what the plan was for once we reached the checkpoint.

"Alright, in three minutes, we're jumpin' off this train. Got it?" Puck asked, drawing my attention back to him. Pushing myself off of the wall I made my way toward Rachel at this news, wanted to be near her when we jumped. She looked up at me, catching my eyes and flashing me an award-winning smile and I melted, she had to be the most gorgeous woman on the planet.

"You are going to be alright, correct?" I asked her. Trying not to appear as worried as I was.

"I am perfectly capable of jumping out of a train Quinn." She stated with a pointed and firm nod of her head.

"I know you are."

A loud beeping noise filled the train car, alerting us all.

"That's odd. The ID checkpoint was supposed to be further down." Rachel stated with her eyebrows knit together in confusion. I knew that this meant that Shinra was more than likely on to us invading the train; we would have to jump sooner than planned. I knew their strength and they would murder us.

"Type A Security Alert!" The conductor stated loudly. "Unidentified passengers confirmed. A search of all cars will be conducted! Repeat! Type A Security Alert! Unidentified passengers confirmed. A search of all cars will be conducted!"

The short brunette standing beside me started to look around frantically. "What is happening?"

One of our other teammates made their way into the train car we occupied and she announced. "We're in trouble, I'll explain later! Just hurry up and get to the next car!"

"Shit! Someone blew it!" Puck shouted "Let's go!"

I followed them as they proceeded to run through the train cars, hoping to outrace the security check. We made it through car after car, before finally reaching the final train car. Closing the door behind us, Puck turned to me. "All right! We made it! Let's go, we're gonna dive outta here!"

Standing at the door to the train car I glanced down at the short brunette standing beside me, her large brown eyes were full of worry. I knew that her confidence was just a front, that she was actually terrified. Looking up at me she offered me a shaky smile. "Scary, huh?"

I bit down on my bottom lip. "I wish that you hadn't insisted on coming—"

"Watch closely Quinn, I'll show you how it's done!" Rachel interrupted me, probably not wishing to hear me once again tell her that it worried me that she was acting irrationally. The young woman was a fighter, she could hold her own in a fight, she had a daily exercise routine and had often sparred with me whilst training in my teen years, but she was not a soldier. I knew that it was wrong of me, and that it offended her, but I could not help but feel protective of her.

Hazel eyes widened and my heart nearly burst, as I watched the other woman jump from the train. Tucking and rolling on the grassy plains as she landed.

Closely behind her, I jumped, followed by the rest of my team and our leader. It took us a few minutes to all locate each other, but once we did, we quickly devised the next part of the plan. Truthfully, as a woman used to military plans, this "plan" did not seem well-devised in the least. I was just pleased to have Rachel next to me once more, safe from harm.

"Good, so far everything's going as planned!" Puck stated with a grin. _'I still cannot believe that this was their plan…' _"Better not let your guard down till we get to the Sector 5 Reactor. Come on you guys! The Reactor is just down that tunnel!" With that he started toward the tunnel, gun arm raised and prepared to shoot at anything or anyone that posed a threat to the young man.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

"Quinn, plant the bomb! We'll watch your back!" Puck shouted as he and Rachel turned their backs on me. I knelt down in front of the reactor and started to plant the bomb, wondering to myself how it became my job to do so. Wasn't he the leader?

Unexpectedly, my head started to pound and an immense pain flooded my senses. I could no longer see, I could no longer hear, I could not do much of anything as I fell to the ground with my head between my knees.

My mind filled with fog as it was riddled with dark memories, memories that fueled the fire of hatred and revenge inside of me. I could see Rachel, she was only a teenager. She was bent over her father's corpse, holding his body close to her own, large brown eyes full of sorrow and pain as tears rolled down her cheeks. She was shaking, and his blood was staining her skin. With no control over my body, I was powerless to relive one of the worst moments of my life.

"Father…" Rachel said through soft wheezes. "Father… please… speak to me…" He did not respond. "Sebastian did this to you didn't he! Sebastian, SOLDIER, Mako Reactors, Shinra, everything! I hate them all!"

"Damn man, get a hold of yourself!" Puck shouted, shaking my body and jolting me out of the memory. I could feel a pain in my chest as my eyes came in contact with those same brown eyes, the same pained eyes I had just witnessed. I wanted to protect her; she should never hurt like that again.

"Are you alright Quinn, you do not seem to be feeling well." Rachel wondered, obviously concerned.

"….Rachel…" I whispered, under my breath. It was so quiet that I wondered if she would even be able to hear it.

"What is it, Quinn?"

"No…Forget it…" I replied rushing to finish planting the bomb. Still, I could not shake that feeling, that memory, the way that it made my stomach flip. How could Sebastian have hurt the woman that I loved that way? Finishing setting up the bomb, I stood to my feet and turned my attention to Puck. Awaiting the next order.

"This way!" The young man shouted, before rushing along the metal bridge of the reactor. Rachel and I following closely behind him.

All of a sudden we were ambushed by a group of Shinra soldiers who surrounded our group. Puck looked around, most likely for an exit. "Shinra soldiers? Shit! What the hell's goin' on?"

"It's a trap." My voice was monotone, as my hazel eyes searched for any weakness in the group; they appeared to have planned this well though, because I did not see a way out. Now I was standing more so in front of Rachel, in hopes to shield her with my body.

"President Shinra?" Puck asked, eyes fixated on the president.

"Why is the President here?" Rachel wondered from behind me. I did not have an answer. My eyes were focused on the older man, I hated him.

"Hm. So you all must be that—What was it?"

"AVALANCHE! And don't ya forget it!" Puck shouted proudly, lifting his gun arm preparing to solve this problem as he solved most of his problems it seemed, with violence. I had rarely witnessed him attempt to talk his way out of a situation with kindness. "You're President Shinra, huh?"

I took another step closer to the president. Catching his eyes with mine, cold and full of resentment. "Long time no see, President."

"Long time no see?" He cocked his head to the side, looking me over. I felt uneasy under his gaze. "Oh, you. You're the one who quit SOLDIER in order to join AVALANCHE correct? I knew that you'd been exposed to Mako, from the look in your eyes. Tell me, traitor, what was your name?"

"Quinn."

"Forgive me for asking, but I can't be expected to remember each person's name. Unless you become another Sebastian. Yes, Sebastian. He was brilliant. Perhaps too brilliant."

My body started to shake as the memory once again surfaced in my mind; I spoke his name with such spite. "Sebastian?" Rachel could tell that I was upset and she reached out, placing a hand on my arm, in order to calm me down. It worked, but only slightly. Her touch always seemed to soothe me.

"You know what? I don't give a damn 'bout none of that! This place's goin' up with a bang and it serves you guys' right!" Puck shouted, interrupting the conversation that we had been having.

"And such a waste of good fireworks, just to get rid of vermin like you." The President sneered.

Puck started to shake. "Vermin? That's all you can say? Shinra are the vermin, killing the planet! So shut up jackass!"

He rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. "You are really beginning to bore me. I am a very busy man, so if you will excuse me. I have a dinner that I must attend." With a smirk he turned his back to us.

"Dinner? Don't give me that! I ain't even started with you yet!"

"But, I've made arrangements for a playmate for you all."

A large robot that resembled a soldier moved across the bridge, standing in front of the President. Honestly, I was not surprised. He often had others fight his battles for him. Reaching for my large sword I pulled it from its sheath, wielding it with two hands.

"Meet 'Airbuster', a techno-soldier. Our Weapon Development Department created him. I'm sure the data that he will extract from your dead bodies, will be of great use to us in future experiments."

"Techno-soldier?" I questioned.

"Now, then, if you'll excuse me." A helicopter started to lower from the sky and he quickly got on board and away from the scene, leaving us to fend for ourselves. This was going to be a difficult fight, and I worried that we would not kill the robot fast enough to escape the explosion.

The fight was intense; it had taken more than a few blows from my sword to defeat the monster. And although I was hesitant to allow her to fight, Rachel got in many good punches and kicks as well. Finally, the robot blew up and we started to race toward the entrance of the reactor, knowing that we had little time before the bomb that I set would explode. Suddenly, I tripped and slid, almost falling through a hole in the bridge. The drop had to be at least thirty feet high, and I was suddenly terrified as I held on for dear life.

My muscles were growing tired as I tried to pull myself out of the hole. I could see Puck and Rachel, but they could not reach me from where they were standing. It was going to be up to me to save myself.

"It's gonna blow! Let's go, Rachel!" I heard Puck shout and my face covered with sadness, she wouldn't leave me would she?

"Can't you do something, Puck!"

"Look how far down she is, I can't reach her!"

"Quinn!" Rachel shouted from above. "Please, don't die! You can't die! There is still so much that I want to tell you!"

"I know, Rachel—" I forced out, trying again to pull myself up to no avail. I felt like a failure. This was how my epic adventure would end? Not in a battle, not after I proclaimed my love to the woman of my dreams, but falling through a hole in a bridge and dropping to my doom?

"I can't hold on much longer!" I shouted out. There was another explosion and as my body rocked with it, I could no longer keep my grip. My gloved hands let go of the stone bridge and I started to fall. Hazel eyes connected with brown. I felt my heart pounding away, I felt my life flash before my eyes, I was never going to get to tell her how I felt. I would never see that beautiful face again.

O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O

Authors Note

I hope that you all enjoy this chapter. Please do leave me reviews if you would like to see more!


	4. Bed Of Roses

Living Through Memories

Disclaimer: I own nothing. These characters belong to the creator of Glee and Final Fantasy.

Pairing: Rachel/Quinn

Rating: M

Chapter 4

Bed of Roses

"Hello…" A high pitched male voice spoke through my hazy dreams; I could feel nothing but pain and see nothing but blackness. My eyes were too heavy to open. "Are you alright…? Can you hear me?" The boy continued his voice nearly a song. It was actually very beautiful. It would have been soothing if my head did not feel as if it were about to combust.

"Mmh." I groaned out, my voice deep and raspy as I rolled over onto my back. "Yeah?" I forced out.

"Back then… you could get by with just skinned knees." He spoke out softly.

"What do you mean by 'back then'?"

"What about now? Can you get up?" The man seemed to be ignoring my question entirely; it would have been frustrating if I were not so happy to be alive. It gave me one more chance to finally open up to Rachel and tell her how I feel.

"I'll give it a try." I said, before moving my body in an attempt to force myself into a sitting position. The soft voice was encouraging me, and it gave me the strength to finish my goal. Now sitting up I forced my eyes open, and hazel eyes immediately landed upon a familiar looking young man in pink attire. He was the young man who had been selling flowers. Where was I? Why was he here with me? How far was I from Rachel?

He cocked his head to the side, clear blue eyes connecting with mine as his lips curled up in a smile. "Hey there sweetie, you okay?"

I ran my hand through my blonde hair, trying to untangle it. My head was throbbing. "Yeah… Where am I?" My voice cracked with stress.

"This is the church in the Sector 5 slums. It suddenly fell on top of me, and you came tumbling down with it. It really gave me a scare." He spoke nonchalantly; it was almost strange how easily he was dealing with the church caving in on him and the woman falling from heaven.

"How did I manage to survive the fall?"

"The roof and the flower bed must have broken your fall. You are lucky."

"Flower bed?" I asked, hazel eyes finally noticing that I was lying in the middle of a beautiful garden, I quickly stood to my feet and moved out of the flowers. "Sorry about that."

His chuckle sounded like music to my ears. "That is quite alright. The flowers here are quite resilient. They say that you can't grow grass and flowers in all of Midgar, but for some reason, the flowers have no trouble blooming here. I love it here." With that the small man in pink continued to nurse his flowers.

"We have met before, correct?" His attention was on the flowers as he asked.

"Yeah… You were selling flowers."

"Thank you for buying my flowers by the way." He said, flashing me that grin that stretched from one of his pointy ears to the other. It was almost cute. "Say, I feel like talking. Do you feel up to it? After all, here we are meeting again, right? May as well make the best of it."

"I guess so, but I really do need to—"

"—Wait here! I've got to check my flowers. It will just be a minute." He interrupted me, rushing around the flowers checking to make certain they were all in tip-top shape. I wondered, momentarily, why they were so precious to him, and then it reminded me of what was so precious to me. I missed Rachel already.

After he had completed his task he returned to me. "I apologize for being so scatterbrained, but this is kind of my business. I have to keep these flowers blooming or I will starve. Oh, how rude of me, I should have introduced myself. My name is Kurt. Pleased to meet you."

"The name is Quinn."

"And what do you do for a living Quinn?" He stretched the words curiously.

"I do a little bit of everything."

"Oooh, a jack of all trades!"

"I suppose." I stated with a soft chuckle under my breath and a shake of my head. This young man, Kurt, was definitely an optimistic and curious one. "I do whatever is needed."

Two blondes entered the church and Kurt's blue eyes immediately landed upon them, one was a young man with large lips and blonde spikey hair, he had a scar beneath his right eye and goggles resting on his forehead, and the other was an older woman with a similar blonde haircut and a white suite on. They did not appear happy.

"Say, Quinn, you wouldn't happen to have ever been a bodyguard before would you? You DO do everything, right?" Kurt questioned, backing away from the two blondes.

"Yes, that is correct." I stated, having a feeling that I knew where this was going.

"Then, I would love it if you would get me out of here and escort me home." His lips curled up in a nervous smile and his blue eyes caught my hazel, I knew that I had to save him. For some reason I felt that I owed it to him.

Looking over their uniforms I could see it, I recognized them. "I know you. That uniform…" I whispered out softly, my voice deep.

"This one's a little weird." One of the men that accompanied the blondes stated.

"Be quiet you Shinra spy!" I shouted, my body shaking a little as I withdrew my sword preparing for an inevitable battle. Where there was a SOLDIER, there was a battle.

"Sam, do you want us to take her out?" One of the men asked the blonde with the scar.

"I haven't decided yet."

"Please do not fight in here!" Kurt shouted in his high-pitched voice, throwing his hands up in visual annoyance. Once again he appeared far too nonchalant considering the situation, it truly baffled me. "You will ruin the flowers! The exit is back there!" He pointed to the church door.

Kurt and I proceeded toward the second floor of the church, so that I could watch them from above. I wondered what they were doing here.

"There they are! Over there!" Sam shouted out, pointing us out on the second floor.

"They saw us." Kurt stated the obvious and all I could do was shrug.

"Yeah, I know. Looks like they aren't going to let us go without a fight."

"What should we do?" His eyes were full of worry and concern, I half wondered if he were more worried about his flowers' lives then his own. He was definitely strange.

"Well, we can't let them catch us, can we?" I asked with a smirk on my pink lips, he shook his head quickly and I finished. "Then there is only one thing left that we can do." With that statement I jumped to the next platform hoping that Kurt would follow me. Turning I realized that he hadn't. "Kurt! This way! I'll hold them off!"

"Right! Make sure they don't get through!"

"The Ancient is getting away! Attack! Attack! Attack!" Sam shouted out, controlling his army. The soldiers fired their rifles in Kurt's direction and he fell from the platform to the main floor of the church, shouting out.

"Kurt!" I shouted.

"Quinn, help!"

"Damn it!" I growled out now, frustrated with the entire situation. Honestly, if I had my way, I would leave now. The last thing that I wanted to do was waste time trying to save a man that I did not know, not when I needed to get back to Rachel, not when I had so much to do. Still, I knew that my conscience would weigh me down with unbearable guilt if I left him to die.

I had to save him. Then I would get to Rachel.

O

Authors Note

If you wish to see more and longer chapters leave me some reviews!

Thank you all very much.


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